‘Vida’ Season 2 Episode 3 Recap: Queer Cowboys and Millennial Lotería

Watching Vida often feels like each episode is just trying to outdo itself, and in this one, we’ve got it all: a gay cowboy wedding, Latinxs taking over cross-fit, a woman talking to a ghost, millennial lotería, even a shout-out to the Denver airport

June 6, 2019 - 09:27

Watching Vida often feels like each episode is just trying to outdo itself, and in this one, we’ve got it all: a gay cowboy wedding, Latinxs taking over cross-fit, a woman talking to a ghost, millennial lotería, even a shout-out to the Denver airport. In fact, you could probably play millennial lotería while watching this episode and totally win. Here’s what went down:

No One Calls Emma A Baby Queer

Emma and Cruz are still giving things a go, though not without complications at every beat. We open with that pair getting carnal (and Emma struggling a bit to relax initially—something that Cruz ends up sharing publicly later much to Emma’s horror). Cruz ends up trying to take their budding relationship further by inviting Emma to her cousin’s wedding. She agrees to attend, though in a later scene, she tells Lyn about it and we see just how uncomfortable she is with the idea. What is it about being with or around Cruz in public that causes Emma to become so shifty?

At first, the pair get to the wedding and all seems well. But Cruz’s need for PDA is frequently met with a chill from Emma. Things progress for the worst when Cruz’s friends all begin to make assumptions about Emma. “When I was a baby queer…” begins one friend, addressing how she also struggled with PDA when she first “came out.” The friends take it further and begin to accuse Emma of “vacationing,” and even label her a potential “tourist,” which sends Emma over the wall. She snaps back that she’s pushing 30, and won’t be subjected to their particular notions of queerness—and is only backed by another new face in the group: Nico.

Emma storms off and Cruz’s attempt to chase after her falls short when Emma makes it clear that it wasn’t OK for her to allow the friends to roast her. Cruz and Emma are clearly at an impasse as to what is acceptable public discourse, but the truly hurtful icing on the cake is when Cruz calls Emma a “cautionary tale” in why mothers should hug their daughters. Odds are these two will not be getting back together.

All that said, who should be waiting right outside the reception hall other than that same new face from before. Nico offers to call Emma a Lyft, and Emma reluctantly accepts. But after a couple minutes of conversing, the two seem to hit it off, and Emma invites Nico to come by the bar and pay her back. Maybe things won’t be going so bad for Emma after all?

Can Lyn Just Stick To Being Pretty?

As usual, Lyn is doing what she can to find her place in her new life back in her old neighborhood. She’s joined some kind of cross-fit gym (or ask someone who actually know about working out as yoga’s more my thing), and ends up flirting with some guy who turns out to be a local councilman. Rudy (the councilman) invites her out to have an açai bowl, but Lyn turns him down…for now.

Later, she decides to host a Millennial Lotería night at Vida in the hopes of drawing a new and perhaps different crowd than the usual clientele. But considering most of the regulars are much older Mexicans who don’t understand the quirkiness of the game, it’s a bit of a flop. Dona Tita ends up coming by to collect her winnings on the game, but advises Lyn that perhaps she should just stick to “being pretty.”

It gets worse for Lyn when she runs into Doña Lupe, who acts as though she has messages directly from “speaking” with Lyn’s deceased mother. Lyn ends up running off and finishes the episode at her mother’s grave, talking to her in the only way she knows how. Because despite Lyn’s brattiness and occasional nastiness, she’s still a grieving child most of all.

Final Notes:

Mari introduces Tlaloc to Johnny early in this episode, and Johnny’s hyper-machista attitude is not cool. He even tries to slut-shame Mari by telling her she better not end up pregnant. This from the guy who knocked up his girlfriend and then went and cheated on her multiple times with his ex? Yeah, OK, Johnny.
Mari’s working for Emma now as Eddy’s caretaker though, so yay, Mari!
Fully appreciate all the queer nods on Nico’s part, from name-dropping Shane (y’all excited about The L Word reboot?!) to bringing up how poorly lesbian bars always do because women end up u-hauling their relationships and stop going out. While it’s a joke, I am always rather disappointed in how few queer bars mainly cater primarily to women and femmes. Just another reason why Vida (the bar AND the show) are so damn special.
Did y’all see these collaborations between Millennial Lotería and Tanya Saracho/Vida, though?! SO GOOD!